Wish
by njborba
Summary: Kahlan tries to take Richard's mind off of recent events. Set just after the episode 1x17, Deception.


Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the TV series _Legend of the Seeker_ or its characters.

**Wish  
**By N. J. Borba

* * *

The setting sun drowned the horizon in shades of purple and gold as Kahlan cleaned up the items that had been used for their meal. While she went about the chore, she kept one concerned eye on Richard who stood near the cliff's edge looking out at the valley below. After they'd burned the whisperer weapons, Richard and Kahlan had walked for a short time before setting up camp, deciding to rejoin Zedd in the morning. They hadn't spoken much along the way and she was worried about him. Normally he managed to recover quickly after a confrontation, but so much had occurred in the last few weeks; it was enough to make any one crack a little.

Kahlan finished putting everything away in their packs so they could leave in the morning with little effort. She left some dried fruit and bread within easy reach for their breakfast and then she went to join Richard at his perch. He turned to acknowledge her presence but no smile accompanied the greeting and he turned back to watch as the sunset faded to an inky black. The stars began to show themselves, one by one, as the sky slipped into night.

"Are you all right?" Kahlan finally asked.

Richard shrugged and released a heavy sigh as he sat down on a large rock that was situated to the left of the outlook point. "I'm not sure I know what all right means any more," he honestly replied.

She sat down beside him. "Is it about what happened with Captain Ensor?"

"Yes," he nodded. "Ensor was…"

"A friend?"

"No," Richard shook his head. "I could never call him that, especially not after how I betrayed him," he felt a measure of guilt where there should have been none. "But he had a family, Kahlan, a wife and four children," another pained sigh escaped his lips. "I let him go this time because I got too close, but I know that if I ever face him again I _will_ have to kill him. I will have to make that kind woman, who let me into her home, a widow."

Kahlan's heart ached at the thought. She too had befriended a man who had tried to kill them. Now his wife was widowed. The waters of war, once so pristinely clear, had become quite muddy recently. "Many of the men we fight have families, Richard. Many that you have killed."

"But they didn't have faces," Richard countered. "Not really, not like Ensor or Tanner," his heart sank further when he thought about the whistle that he had carved for the fair-haired child and how happy the boy had been. "Sometimes I wish I had no friends, no family. I wish that Michael's death had ended that part of my life."

"You don't really mean that."

He shook his head. "No," he replied. "But I found my mother and lost her in the same instant. I discovered that I have a sister yet I've barely had time to get to know her. I also found out that Zedd is my grandfather and you…" he shrugged again as he trailed off, gazing at the stars in hopes that they could provide the answers he sought.

A nervous lump formed in Kahlan's throat. "You're still upset that I didn't tell you about Zedd," she suspected. "I'm sorry, Richard, I…"

"It's not that," he shook his head. Richard met her eyes, trying to reassure her. "I know why you didn't tell me, I know you couldn't betray Zedd's confidence. I understand that," he took her hand in his and rested them both atop her knee. The reason her name had come up was a whole other issue that need not be touched again at the moment. "I'm just so confused," he admitted. "Less than a year ago I lived simply; I knew who I was and what I wanted out of life. Now, I feel like I'm just fumbling along, alone in the darkness. I have this great desire to fulfill my destiny, but at the same time I'm worried that I will mess everything up," he unburdened himself to her.

Kahlan smiled in response to his overwhelming feelings. "You won't mess it up," she replied resolutely. Her smile turned a shade more serious as she further addressed the situation. "If you weren't having these thoughts I think I'd be more worried about you. You care, Richard. You care very deeply. Your destiny is a heavy burden to carry, but your compassion is what makes you a just warrior. That compassion will guide you to do what is right. And…" she held his hand just a little tighter. "You are never alone."

He was once more touched by her presence in his life. "I'm not sure I could do it without you."

"You could," she was confident where he wavered. Kahlan thought back to a time just a few weeks past, shortly after their run in with Rahl and Giller, when she had been injured and tired but didn't want to burden Richard with her troubles. He had helped her then and now she wanted to return the favor, to ease his weariness if even a little. As she tried to think of what might help relax his doubts, something caught her attention. "Look," Kahlan pointed toward the sky. They both watched as a bright star streaked across the dark expanse. It disappeared almost as quickly as it had appeared.

"A shooting star," Richard smiled, his spirits somewhat brightened. "We should make a wish," he looked to her for a moment and then closed his eyes. In all the confusion, there was no doubt when it came to the wish he made.

Kahlan closed her eyes as well. In doing so, her thoughts drifted back to a distant memory. "When I was a girl, after my mother died, some nights Dennee and I had trouble sleeping. It was usually because father had commanded us to do his work for him. That was always unsettling," she paused, steadying her voice. "There was a hatch in our sleeping loft and some nights, the nights when he did not bind us to our beds, we would climb up onto the roof and lay down to watch the stars. Many times we spotted shooting stars and would make wishes on them."

He watched her speak, mesmerized by the strength he saw in her, even as she recalled one of the hardest periods in her life. "What did you wish for?" he asked, trying to imagine her as a young girl. That curiosity brought another smile to his face, but she was silent for a moment. "Right," he realized. "You're not meant to tell a wish or it won't come true."

She shook her head, dismissing his words. "Those wishes are long past coming true or not," Kahlan noted. "Mostly I wished for my sister to be safe," she revealed. Her eyes clouded over as she continued. "Sometimes, though, I wished for my father to become an honest, kind man," Kahlan admitted. "My sister remained safe, but my father never changed his ways."

Richard reached up and pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear. He cupped her chin and allowed his fingers to linger there against her silky skin longer than he should have. "Your sister remained safe because you kept her safe," he was certain of the fact. "There was nothing you could do about your father, Kahlan. You were just a child," a sad smile formed as he re-took her hand and squeezed it gently.

A far off look took hold of her as she spoke. "As a child I did believe that a wish was something to be kept silent, as most think. But as I grew to form my own opinions on the matter, I realized that a wish is simply a reflection of your greatest desires in life. Desire is a measure of will. Power of will is only as great as your capacity to love. And love is, and will always be, the greatest driving force behind all that a person truly wishes. A wish is really something you need to make into reality for yourself. No one can magically grant a wish. But if you have enough desire, enough will and enough love then it will come true. And for all of that to happen, it need not be a secret. To make something reality, you must work at it and shout your intentions to the world." She looked him in the eye. "Your wish to fulfill the prophesy must be shouted to the world, Richard. You must love the world enough to see it through."

He stared blankly at her for a very long time before he was able to speak. "I doubt I will ever understand how your mind works, Kahlan Amnell," he shook his head with a look of utter puzzlement and admiration. "But it is a thing of beauty that I strive to learn more about. You never fail to keep me on my toes." His smile was truer than any other that he had shared with her before.

"As it should be," Kahlan's grin was not smug or triumphant in any manner, but content. A long moment passed before she spoke again. "Did it help?" her question came cautiously. "If only for a short time, did I manage to take your mind off of everything else?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes," he gratefully agreed. "Yes, you did. Thank you." They exchanged another smile that helped them both feel less burdened than they had minutes ago. Quiet blanketed the night as they sat for a while longer and continued to watch the stars. Their moments alone were few and far between and they'd be back with Zedd again in the morning. So they relished the precious time they had together. "Kahlan," Richard spoke up again. "If the wish doesn't need to be a secret, if it is meant to be shouted to the world, as you believe… then I can tell you what I wished for, can't I?"

Kahlan turned to face him again. "No, Richard, it need not be a secret," she agreed. "But you do not need to tell me your wish. I already know, for I wished the same." The confessor turned back toward their view of the night sky. Her last words were barely a whisper above the cool wind that blew across the cliff's edge. "Our hearts shout it loudly enough without needing to put words to it."

He watched as another star shot across the sky, followed by an entire shower of them; a cascade like that of a raging waterfall. At that moment Richard felt his mind settle and his resolve firm. The doubts of his duty faded as quickly as the streaks of starlight. His desire and will grew stronger than any other in the world. He would win the war against Rahl, and then, together, they would make their wish come true.

* * *

**End**


End file.
